Tomatillos

Something I like to do, and encourage others to do, is try a new foods as much as possible.  Nothing worse than hearing someone say "I don't like that" about a food when they have never even tasted.  Try something new and you may be surprised at how much you like it!


When I hit the market on Saturdays, I try to come home with one new item.  It is especially fun to try new food from the market because the farmers  are there to talk to you about the food and give you ideas on how to prepare them.


My new food this week was the tomatillo.  I chose the tomatillo because it is as fun to look at as it is to say...toh-MAH-tee-YO.  Tell me you don't want to just say that over and over again?  

The tomatillo is the cousin of the tomato.  It is a small green fruit that is covered in a wrapper called a 'husk' and has a tart taste.  Most commonly used to make salsa verde which is great with tortillas or over a meat dish.


After googling a few recipes, I took what I liked from each and made my own thing.  I roasted the tomatillos under the broiler for about 5-6 minutes..just until they were browned on top.  I took all the other ingredients: tomatillo, cilantro, shallot, ancho, lemon, and garlic (all but the garlic and lemon from the farmers market).

Put everything in a food processor and hit chop until it looks like this..

It was very tasty..tart and a bit spicy.   I mixed mine with brown rice and black beans.  It is just way too hot to stand over a stove so adding this quick salsa verde gave an old favorite some much needed excitement.  
The tomatillo is new food that will make its way back into my shopping bag.  What new food will you try this week?